The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1887-05-12
STREETS AND ROADS.

The late rains left the streets and roads
of this district in deplorable condition.
Nothing in the way of street cleaning
had been attempted for months, and
although very large sum is reported as
having been expended on the roads, no
one knows where the money was applied
Liliha street has had attention, but as the
Legislature appropriated 81 200 for that
work it should not count in the general
statement of expenditure on streets and
roads, amounting to nearly eighty thous-
and dollars last fiscal year, not to speak
of the Queen street extension grab. A
great many specific appropriations were
made by the Legislature for roads and
streets in Kona district, Oahu, but if any
Of them, except Lilha street, has been
touched by the Road Supervisor and his
gangs of prisoners we have not heard of
it. What is known is that traffic on
streets and highways is at once difficult
and dangerous owing to continued ne
glect. u
That murmurs of discomfort on the
part of the taxpayers should have passed
beyond the Interior office is not to be
wondered at. Nor is it surprising under
the circumstances that gang of prison
ers should have been detailed to scrape
the sinking mud on Fort street into
heaps for removal All that was to be
expected from the nature of the remon-
strances made; but the way the work
was gone about yesterday was sufficient
to throw ridicule and discredit upon the
Government. The scrapers in Jail livery
were slow enough, and appeared to think
that they were detailed for gentle manual
exercise. They were followed, a long
way off, by three or four uleh with
horses and carts, who improved upon
the scrapers' methods. Each driver
was expected to attend to his horse and
shovel mud into the cart. One of these
teams was in charge of Kanaka boy,
who played with hoe which he swung
around his head, striking heap of mud
in its descent, and then by backward |
swing tossing what stuck to it into the |
vehicle. He succeeded in putting about |
two shovelsful into the cart, which he
doubtless considered load, for he drove
away with it when his companions
moved off. The others were not much
OF an improvement upon him although
they were provided with shovels.
We mention this because it is in har-
mony with everything that has been
done Ia the way OF street work during
the present regime. There should have
been TWO men detailed to each cart to
load the mud as fast as it was scraped
up, but it was left untouched for hours
TO be scattered by the wheels of passing
vehicles. Some of the carts employed
We're not in charge of prisoners, judging
by the garb OF the men, and were prob
ably part of the hired contingent which
the Road Supervisor is reported to en-
ploy to do Government work. Towards
five O'Clock squirt was put on, and the
prison gang loaded up the remaining
heaps of dirt with commendable CELEBRITY
1t is proper to state in this connection
that the bulk of the mud scraped off Fort
street yesterday had been deposited there
in dry state by the Government carts
before the late rains set in, and was
supposed to be road metal for permanent
repairs. Ii there were anybody with
business sense or intelligence connected
with the bureau of roads and bridges,
such useless expenditure of public
money would not have taken place. But
Mr.. Alapai evidently knows nothing
about road making, and his official SUI
periors appear to care less than he does.
Has it ever occurred to them that
patience may become exhausted, and
that taxpayers may refuse to contribute
road tax without taking guarantees
that the money will behonestly applied?
It would be absurd to say that the road
tax and specific appropriations for roads
and bridges in this district have been
applied as contemplated by the Legisla-
ture last session. The appearance of the
roadbed of Fort street after it was
scraped yesterday, is the strongest con-
domination of the street department that
could be had. It is full OF deep ruts